"It might just get us somewhere because at the moment there isn't really anything in place for these kids and they are getting nowhere."
He said there was an "appalling incarceration rate for Maori" and the level of recidivism was "huge" with Maori offenders.
"We want to get them while they are still young. They might have pinched a bike or done something like that," he said.
"We just want to get them while they are just low-level offenders and work with them to prevent them from re-offending."
Mr Bird said the offenders would meet on a marae with their whanau and the victim and trained workers would facilitate a rehabilitation process.
"We are hoping this will prove to be an effective tool," Mr Bird said.
He said another key motivator was the fact Murupara had gang problems and this could also contribute to getting youngsters away from gangs.
"A lot of repeat offenders often end up associated with gangs and some of the offending even starts with gangs so if we can get these kids away from things like that we would have achieved something."
Mr Bird said the initiative had been well received in the Murupara community.
"The idea has been in the making for several months and youth workers in the town have been trained to deal with youth offenders."
Mr Bird said the official launch date for the programme was May 25 and there was still some work to be done to ensure it ran smoothly.
"We are looking forward to this. It should be a positive thing for our town."